Author: Azamat Jeanev

Trade between China and Central Asian states surged in 2023, according to data published by China’s customs agency, or GACC. But the flow of commerce is increasingly favoring Beijing. Annual trade turnover for the region as reported by the GACC totaled $89.4 billion in 2023, a 27 percent increase over the previous year’s level of $70.2 billion. The balance of trade, however, was lopsided: goods and services exported to Central Asian states amounted to $61.4 billion, while Beijing’s imports from the region were worth $28 billion. Kazakhstan was China’s largest trade partner in 2023, with bilateral trade turnover reaching $41 billion, a…

WASHINGTON — China’s increasingly “pretty malign behavior” in the southwest Pacific may be angering its neighbors but it’s also providing an opportunity for the US to strengthen its hand in the region, a senior Marine officer said today. “… [W]hat strengthens a partnership is when someone has a problem and they know that they can go to the United States, and they can say, ‘Thank you for helping us,’ it just strengthens those partnerships,” Brig. Gen. Stephen Lightfoot said today at an event hosted by the Center for Naval Analyses. “And we’re seeing that in the Philippines right now where…

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa called last week’s South Korean court ruling in favor of a group of former “comfort women” seeking compensation from Tokyo “extremely regrettable” and urged Seoul to address the issue, during bilateral talks with South Korea’s top diplomat Sunday. During the 85-minute meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin in the port city of Busan, about 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, Kamikawa conveyed Tokyo’s position that Seoul “immediately take appropriate measures,” according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. The term “comfort women,” or ianfu in Japanese, is a euphemism for those who suffered under Japan’s military brothel system before and during…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s Chairperson of the Constitutional Court Elvira Azimova presented Kazakhstan’s vision for strengthening international peace and security in the Leaders’ Segment at the United Nations (UN) High-Level Roundtable on The Future of Human Rights, Peace and Security in Geneva, Switzerland on Dec. 13, reported the Constitutional Court’s press service. As the sole representative from Central Asia at the UN Leaders Segment, she outlined three critical factors for ensuring peaceful and sustainable development that included the protection of the rights and fundamental freedoms of each individual, the rule of law for political stability, economic and social progress and the…

ASTANA — In a move set to bolster global financial collaboration, the Asia-Pacific Association of Central Securities Depositories (ACG) will hold its 26th Annual General Meeting in Almaty next year, Kazakhstan Central Securities Depository announced in a press release on Nov. 1.  The event will bring together 38 depository, stock exchange, and clearing organizations hailing from countries across the globe, including China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, India, Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. The selection of Almaty for the ACG Annual Meeting marks Kazakhstan as an emerging investment and depository hub in the region, fortifying collaborations with…

Braving the scorching sun, engineer Rinat Turganbekov patrolled through glittering solar panel arrays that adorn the expansive plains of Kazakhstan. The Kapshagay photovoltaic power station, one of the largest single solar power projects in the Central Asian country, is a part of the China-Kazakhstan green energy cooperation initiative, jointly invested in and constructed by the Chinese company Universal Energy and Kazakh counterparts. As a seasoned member of Universal Energy Kazakhstan, Turganbekov has witnessed firsthand the remarkable transformation brought about by solar power stations, providing local residents with green and affordable electricity. “Chinese companies have brought significant changes to my life,”…

AKIPRESS.COM – Minister of Defense of Kazakhstan Ruslan Zhaksylykov held a number of meetings in Ankara (Turkey) and visited military facilities, institutions and enterprises of the military-industrial comple, the press service of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan reported. Negotiations between Colonel General Ruslan Zhaksylykov and Minister of National Defense Yashar Guler took place. The Defense Ministers discussed the current state and prospects of bilateral relations in areas of mutual interest. General Zhaksylykov also met with the Commander-in-Chief of the Gendarmerie of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Army General Arif Cetin, and the head of the Turkish Defense…

JAKARTA/SEOUL, Oct 17 (Reuters) – Relations between North Korea and Russia were “very worrying,” the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim said on Tuesday, after the White House said last week Pyongyang recently provided Russia a shipment of weapons. The weapons deliveries between the two countries were “dangerous” and “destabilising,” Kim told reporters after meeting his South Korean and Japanese counterparts in Jakarta, and reaffirmed U.S. commitment to protecting its allies. “At the same time we will continue our work to counter the DPRK’s unlawful WMD (weapons of mass destruction) and ballistic missiles,” Kim told a briefing, referring to North…

ASTANA – In response to the recent armed conflict between Hamas and Israel, the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Oct. 17 condemning the attacks by Hamas against civilians in Israel and the capture of hostages, including foreigners. “We support the call of the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on immediate and unconditional release of hostages and unimpeded access to humanitarian aid,” the statement reads.  President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, speaking at the Summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Bishkek, said: “Challenges that have not been addressed for decades cannot be resolved by terrorist…

Israel has not only been the victim of a vicious and despicable terrorist attack. It is also the victim of a brazenly cynical move to disrupt the international stage and subvert tranquility in the Middle East. The Israeli-Palestinian powder keg conveniently served to add yet another full scale crisis putting even further pressure on a global order already strained to breaking point. Although no concrete evidence exists of any involvement in the attacks, Russia stands to gain the most from this extra flash point on the world map, as violence and war in the Middle East distracts from Putin’s unjustified…